Seasonal Spring Rolls
Source: 101cookbooks.com by Heidi Swanson
Recipe Type: Appetizers and Sides | Seasons: Spring, Winter
This recipe was adapted from 101cookbooks.com by Heidi Swanson. See the Market to Kitchen video with our Volunteer & Special Projects Coordinator Cindy Mendoza below.
Note from Cindy: Rolls are very versatile and can accommodate anything in season. Adapted from Heidi Swanson, the recipe below is well suited for the winter, but in the summer, I make a version inspired by Vietnamese cookbook author Andrea Nguyen from her cookbook Vietnamese Food Everyday, using thinly sliced cucumbers, julienned jicama, slices of ripe yellow peaches or nectarines, lettuce, crispy caramelized pork crumbles, and basil. You can get nearly all of the produce in our markets and great ground pork from Root Down Farm, Sonoma Meat Co. or any other of our ranchers.
Makes 20 to 24 rolls
INGREDIENTS
Ginger Onion Paste
2 spring onions, finely sliced
2 red spring onions, finely sliced (or equiv. red onion or shallots)
3 tablespoons peeled and minced ginger
1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
3 tablespoons canola oil
Brown Sugar Tofu & Mushrooms
12 ounces Hodo extra firm tofu
3 medium cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
4 teaspoons natural cane or brown sugar
2 tablespoons canola oil
8 ounces mushrooms, brushed clean, sliced 1/4-inch thick
Crisp, crunchy lettuce (little gems or romaine) (1 to 2 dozen leaves)
1 small bunch fresh cilantro or other herbs, well washed and dried
1 medium watermelon radish, cut in half and sliced thin into half moons
1 to 2 dozen rice paper wrappers
PREPARATION
To make the ginger onion paste: Place the onions and ginger in a mortar and pestle. Sprinkle with the salt, and pound until the onions are bruised. Heat the oil in a small saucepan until hot. Add the onion mixture to the oil, stir and let it sizzle for a moment then remove from the heat to cool.
To make the tofu and mushrooms: Preheat the broiler. Pat the tofu dry, and cut into four equal slabs. Place the garlic in a mortar and pestle, sprinkle with the salt and sugar, and pound into a paste. Work the oil in, a bit at a time, until the ingredients are completely combined. Use your hands to gently coat each piece of tofu. Place the tofu in a single layer on a baking sheet, and reserve the remaining marinade in the bowl. Broil tofu for 7 minutes or until golden. Flip the tofu and broil the other side for another 7 minutes or until golden. Remove from the baking sheet, and when cool enough to handle, slice each slab into 5-6 pencil-thick pieces, and salt to taste.
Toss the mushrooms in the residual marinade left in the tofu bowl. Heat a skillet on medium high heat and cook the mushrooms until they release their water and take on a nice, dark color. Transfer to a bowl.
To assemble the spring rolls: In bowl of hot water, dip a rice paper wrapper for just 3 seconds. Resist over-soaking, even if the paper seems stiff, as it will continue to soften as you assemble the wrap. Place on a flat work surface.
Smear 1 teaspoon of ginger onion paste in a horizontal line at the bottom third of the rice paper, leaving the left side free of paste. Then top the paste with a lettuce leaf, a piece of tofu, a few mushrooms, and a few stems of cilantro. Place 2-3 half-moons of the radish on the top third of the rice paper, leaving the left side free of radishes. Fold the left side of the paper over the filling, then tuck and roll. This method makes open-sided rolls, but you can make completely enclosed rolls by folding in both sides mid-wrap. Repeat with the rest of the wrappers and filling.
